Apparatus for canning food.



e. LEES.

APPARATUS FOB CANN|N-G F000.

' (Application led Oct. 11, 1800.)

Patenten Eem-5, |904;

v f "ma Nonms paens co. mom-uma.. wsmuarom n. c.

No, 667,538. Patented Feb. 5, Ism. a. Lees.

APPARATUS FOR CANNENG FUOD (fpplication led Dct. 11, 1900.) (No Model.) 2 Shania-Sheet 2.

me. Nonms Pneus-cof: Wmo-mwa. wAsmNG'roN. n4 c.

UtiTTnn STATES PATENT Tinten@ GEORGE LEES, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO IIIMSELF, AND CHARLES- C. HOVEY, OF BAINBRIDGE, NEIV YORK.

APPARATUS FOR CANNING FOOD.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 667,538, dated February 5, 1901.

Application tiled October 11. 1900l Serial No. 32,692. KNO model.)

To all whom zit may concern,.- which may be of any desired length and is Be it known that I, GEORGE LEES, a citizen provided with a closed end ct and an annuof the United States, residing at Chicago, in lar iiange 1 at the open end, said flange in its the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have surface being provided with agasket Ll, pref- 55 5 invented an Improvement in Apparatus for erably of rubber. The removable end a? is Canning Food, of which the following is a preferably hinged to the annular flange I, the specication. said end being providedaround its periphery My invention is designed as an improveat Spaced-apartintervals with forked lugs 3, ment upon the devices shown and described. and the annular Iiangeis provided with swing- 6o io in my renewed application for Letters Pating arms 2, pivoted to supports extending raent, Serial No. 19,624, iiled June 8, 1900, and dially from the said flange and agreeing in duly reallowed June 15, 1900. position with the forked lugs 3, the said arms My present invention. the same as that of having threaded ends and nuts and being my former application, relates to devices for adapted to swing over between the forked 65 15 exhausting the air from cans containing valugs, so that the nuts bear against the outer rions articles or kinds of food for their pressurfaces of the said lugs to hold the end a2 ervation and in which cans a vacuum was against the flange 1 and close the vacuumformed and the can sealed by atmospheric tank. Within the tank is a track 5, the inpressure. nel-most ends of which are upwardly curved 7o 2o My present invention has for its object the to form stops for the wheels of the carriageimprovement of the devices for receiving the body. Said tracks are suitably supportedl cans and holding the same and the covers from the cylinder ct. I provide the vacuumthereon during the operation of exhausting tank with an air-exhaust pipe and valve 6, al the air and sealing the cans. steam-inlet pipe and valve 7, a fluid-inlet 75 z5 In carrying out my invention I employ a pipe and valve 8, and afluid-exhaust pipe and vacuum-tank in which is a track and a carvalve 9, and I support the vacuum-tank by riage for receiving the cans charged with the suitable frames 10, placed beneath the tank, articles of food, the carriage being run in and and a vacuum-gage 1l is employed to advanl out of the tank upon the track, and I emtage andastufting-box at 12 in the closed end. 8o 3o ploy devices of peculiar form for receiving Thecarriage-body is composed of parts seand supporting the cans and for bringing the curely connected together. These parts comsuperposed groups of cans down upon one anprise the longitudinal U-shaped bars b and other and holding the same with their covers three transverse solid bars c, extending across securely in place before the air is admitted the bars b and let intothe flanges thereof and 85 35 into the cylinder or tank. I also employ spesecurely connected thereto. At the longitudicial devices for supporting the trays of cans nal center and the respective ends of the car-v and for progressively7 and evenly lowering riage-body I provide blocks d d above and bethe same to place and also special devices low the bars b c, and tie-bolts 13 securely confor actuating the lowering devices, so that nect the said blocks and bars together at these 9o 4o they all operate in unison, all of which are places. I also provide X-brackets e upon ophereinafter more particularly set forth. posite sides of the carriage-body and coming In the drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical lonbeneath the outer of the three bars b. These gitudinal section representing my improvebrackets are securely connected to the under ments. Fig. 2 is a cross-section at the line surfaces of the bars b and c, said brackets 95 45 x o3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a partial plan view carrying wheels 14, resting upon the track 5, of one ot' the trays for receiving and supportand by means of which wheels and track the ing the cans; and Fig. 4 is a partial section carriage-body is supported and moved iu and and elevation, in large size, of the devices for out of the vacuum-tank. lowering and raising the superposed groups At the respective ends of the carriage-body roo 5o of cans. I prefer to place bars 29, forming handles by The vacuu m-tank comprises a cylinder a, which the carriage and the load of superposed cans thereon are readily drawn back and forth upon the track 5. There are screwstandards 15 in three pairs at the ends and central portion of the carriage-body, the lower ends of which standards pass through and are secured t-o the bars c, and in the longitudinal center of the carriage-body and between the pairs of screw-standards there are operatingscrews ff f2, with enlarged bases or heads in the blocks d, which enlarged heads form a fixed point of support and prevent the screws being separated from the said blocks when pressure is applied. These operating-screws ff'fz pass through brackets 16, to which are connected rest-rails 17 by screw-pins 18, the said brackets and rails extending transversely of the carriage-body and forming supports for the several trays h. At the rear of the carriage-body and preferably on the axial center thereof l place a cylinder 30 and on the inner surface of the removable end a2 a piston, the parts acting together as an air or spring cushion to force the carriage-body and its load when within the tank against the curved ends of the rails 5 and hold the same in place, so that there is no movement of the carriage-body and its load upon the track while the goods within the cans are being treated within the vacuum-tank.

At the upper ends of the operating-screws fff2 there are brackets 19, and the pressplate g, which extends the full length and width of the carriage, is secured to the several brackets 19 by bolts which pass through the brackets and through U-shaped straps 27, which straps assist in connecting the parts securely together. The trays 71, are alike and are each provided with handles 2O and offset recesses 22 for the cans and into which the cans la set, and the under opposite edges of the said trays h are grooved or offset and provided with guide-lugs 21. These trays, when the carriage is out of the vacuum-tank, are slid sidewise in and out of the carriage, the grooves or osets in the respective opposite edges fitting the corners of the rest-rails 17 and the guide-lugs 21 coming against the su rface of the said rest-rails, so that the trays are supported upon the rest-rails, with their loadV of cans, and by the handles 20 are readily'removed from or placed upon the carriage. Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings show the various trays in position.

A central horizontal shaft t' is located above the press-plate g of the carriage, said shaft passing through two-part sleeves 24 on the upper ends of the operating-screwsfff2 and squared at its forward end and received into a coupling end i12 upon the shaft of the wheel fi', which shaft passes through the stuffing-box 12, and the rear end of the shaftt'is rounded and is received into a recessed boss 28 on the inner surface of the removable end a2. In this way bearings are formed for the respective ends of the shaft, and the shaft is rotated by the wheel i. Keyed to this shaft are the bevel-gears 23, adjacent to the sleeves 24.,

and these gears mesh with bevel-gears 25, surrounding and keyed to the upper ends of the screwsff'f2, each of said gears 25 having an upward-projecting collar receivingr one part of each of the two-part sleeves 24 and forming guides for the part-s of the said sleeves 24 within the said collars and around the upper end of the said operating-screws7 the said gears 25, with the screws, rotating around and within the parts of the said sleeve, as will be seen specially with reference to Fig. 4.

The screw-standards 15 are provided with adjustable stop-nuts 26 so placed as to lirnit the upward position of the rest-rails 17 and the cans held upon the trays supported by said rails, it being possible to depress or lower the said rest-rails and trays below the said nuts 26 and also to lower the press-plate g, but not to raise said parts above the said nuts.

In the operation of the hereinbefore-described device and for the purpose of closing the cans by covers held by atmospheric pressure the end a2 of the vacuum-tank is swung to one side and the carriage-body is upon a track outside of the vacuum-tank. The trays are `filled with cans, upon which the covers rest loosely. The trays, with the cans, are then slid into the carriage, resting upon the rails 17, the various groups of cans being separated by a small space from the trays with the cans that come next above. The carriage` with the cans, is then rolled into the tank upon the track, the squared end of the shaft t' placed in the coupling t2, the end a2 closed, so that the rounded end of the shaft i is within the boss 28, and the end hermetically closed. In this condition the articles of food in the cans may be steam-cooked by steam admitted at the inlet pipe and valve 7, or they may be treated by a pickling or other preservative iiuid introduced by the pipes and valves 8 or 9 and removed therefrom thereby. After the operations for treating the articles of food in the cans have been performed the air is exhausted from the tank by suitable devices through the air-exhaust pipe and the valve 6 closed to maintain a vacuum in the tank. The wheel fi', its shaft, the coupling thereto, and the shaft il are then turned, operating the gears 23 and 25 and turningr the screws fff"1 to rst lower all of the trays and cans except the lowermost, so as to bring the upper trays down upon the covers of the under cans and finally the press-plate down upon the covers of the uppermost cans to hold all of the cancovers down tightly upon the can bo'dies. After this the valve of the air-pipe 6 is opened and air admitted, so that the atmospheric pressure Within the cylinder is the same as outside, the pressure sealing the covers upon the cans and perfecting the closure of the cans. The wheel i', the shaft i, and the gears 23 and 25 are then turned in the reverse direction, so as to raise all of the trays and cans except the lowermost trays and cans to IOO IIO

separate the various trays and cans from one another and the press-plate g from the uppermost series of cans. The end CL2 is then released and swung upon its hinges. The carriage is then drawn out and the trays, with the sealed cans, removed, so that fresh cans can be placed on the trays to repeat the operations hereinoefore described.

Above the press-plate g and transversely of the center and ends of the same I prefer to employ bars 34, through which pass the upper ends of the screw-standards l5 'and operating-screws fffg. These bars 34 hold and maintain the screw-standards 15in relation to one another and to the operatingscrews.

I claim as my inventionl. In an apparatus for canning food, the combination with the cylinder, a removable end, a track within the cylinder and a carriage movable upon said track, of devices for receiving and supporting the superposed groups of cans, means for guiding said re ceiving and supporting devices and means for progressively and evenly lowering the same to place for bringing the cans down upon one another and holding the same With their covers securely in place, and devices for actuating the lowering devices so that they will all operate in unison, substantially as set forth.

2. In an apparatus for canning food, the combination with the cylinder, a removable end, a track within the cylinder and a carriage movable upon said track, of a series of removable trays for receiving and supporting the su pei-posed groups of cans, standards connected to and supported by the carriage and devices connected to the standards for receiving and holding the trays and the cans, devices connecting with and for raising and lowering the said tray-supporting devices and movable with the carriage, and means attached to and movable with the carriage and other and separate means extending outside of the tank and adapted to connect therewith, whereby the trays and cans are lowered or raised at the will of the operator and from outside of the cylinder, substantially as set forth.

3. In an apparatus for canning food, the combination with the cylinder, a removable end, a track within the cylinder, and a carriage movable upon said track,ofscrewstand ards in pairs connected tothe carriage, operating-screws intermediate to the screw-standards and connected to the said carriage, devices serving as supports and through which the said standards and operating-screws pass, the said devices being raised and lowered by the said screws, trays forsupporting the cans resting noon the said devices, a shaft and gears for rotating the screws and means Outside ofthe cylinder coupled with the said shaft for operating the same, substantially as set forth.

at. In an apparatus for canning food, the combination with the cylinder, a removable end, a track within the cylinder and a carriage movable upon said track,of screw-standards in pairs connected to the carriage, operating-screws intermediate to the screw-standards and connected to the said carriage, restrails extending transversely of the carriage and brackets connected therewith and through which brackets and rest-rails the screw-standards and operating-screws pass, a press-plate extending across above the carriage an d connecting the various screw-standards and operating-screws, trays supported by the brackets and rest-rails, the said trays supporting the cans and extending across between the opposite edges of the said rest-rails, and means for rotating the operating-screws for raising and lowering the trays, substantially as set forth.

5. In an apparatus for canning food, the combination with the cylinder, a removable end, a track within the cylinder and a car-` riage movable upon said track,of screw-stan dards in pairs connected to the carriage, operating-screws intermediate to the screw-standards and connected to the said carriage, restrails extending transversely of the carriage and brackets connected therewith and through which brackets and rest rails the screw-standards and operating-screws pass, a press-plate extending across above the carriage and connecting the various screw-standards and operating-screws, trays supported by the brackets and rest-rails, the said trays supporting the cans and extending across between the opposite edges of the said rest-rails, a shaft above the'carriage and press-plate and occupying` the axial center of the carriage, sleeves in which said shaft is supported, gear-` wheels in pairs upon the said shaft and upon the operating-screws, a wheel outside of the cylinder, a shaft on which the same is mounted passing through the cylinder and a coupling connecting the shaft to the shaft of the gears, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

6. In an apparatus for canning food, the combination with a cylinder adaptedlto be closed and hermetically sealed and a carriage movable into and out of the same and restrails extending across the carriage, of a series of trays each tray comprising a plate having offset can-recesses at spaced-apart intervals, handles 2O by which the trayis lifted and the opposite edgesfof the tray offset or grooved and guide-lugs 2l adjacent to the said grooves and adapted to come against the faces of the rest-rails when the trays are in place, substantially as set forth.

7. In an apparatus for canning food, the combination with the cylinder, a removable' end, a track within the cylinder, of a carriage movable upon the said track, composed of parallel longitudinal U-shaped bars, transverse bars connected to the U -shaped bars,brackets at the intersections of the transverse and longitudinal bars, and wheels supported by the said brackets, screw-standards rising from IOO IIO

the transverse bars, operating-screws intermediate to the screw-standards and having enlarged lower ends, connected blocks also at the intersections of the longitudinal and transverse bars and to which the said blocks are securedfr'rays forsupporring su perposed groups of cans, devices carrying the same and guided by the screw-standard s and raised and lowered by the operating-screws, and means for actuating the operating-screws, substantially as set forth.

S. In an apparatus for canning food, the combination with the cylinder, a removable end and track Within the cylinder, of a carriage movable upon the said track and composed of parallel longitudinal U- shaped bars, transverse bars connected tothe U-shaped bars,brackets at the intersections of the transverse and longitudinal bars, and wheels supported by the said brackets, screw-standards rising from the transverse bars, operatingscrews intermediate to the screw-standards and having enlarged lower ends, connected blocks also at the intersections of the longiscrews, and means substantially as shown and n described for rotating the operati n g-screws to lower the groups of superposed cans andultimately bring the press-plate down upon the covers thereof to simultaneously close all the cans, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

Signed by me this 4th day of October, 1900.

GEO. LEES. Witnesses:

WILLIAM J. LEES, C. C. BONE. 

